Winners Announced: 2nd Quarter Volume 43 Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests

L. Ron Hubbard Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests are pleased to announce the second-quarter (January 1–March 31, 2026) winners, for its 43rd year. Congratulations to the Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contest winners! And welcome Egypt and Thailand to the list of countries with winners.

For the Writers of the Future Contest, the winners are:

• First Place – Richard Kirby from Thailand
• Second Place – Scott R. Dantzler from Florida
• Third Place – C. M. Andrews from Utah

For the Illustrators of the Future Contest, the winners are:

• Gilbert Rodriguez from Florida
• Rowan Salah from Egypt
• Josh Vieira from Connecticut

The complete list of Finalists, Semi-Finalists, Silver Honorable Mentions, and Honorable Mentions is available at:

Writers of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 43

Illustrators of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 43

In 1985, with the release of the first volume of the series, L. Ron Hubbard wrote, “A culture is as rich and as capable of surviving as it has imaginative artists…. It is with this in mind that I initiated a means for new and budding writers to have a chance for their creative efforts to be seen and acknowledged.” And with that, the longest-running and most successful science fiction and fantasy competition for new writers and artists began.

The Contest Director, Joni Labaqui, stated, “I am exceptionally excited to announce two new countries added to the list of countries with winners, Egypt and Thailand, bringing the combined total of countries with winners up to 54.”

The award-winning writers and illustrators will be flown to Hollywood for a week-long workshop with Contest judges, some of the field’s biggest names, and a lavish awards ceremony.

Writer judges are Kevin J. Anderson, Doug Beason, Gregory Benford, Orson Scott Card, Brian Herbert, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Hugh Howey, Nancy Kress, Katherine Kurtz, Mark Leslie Lefebvre, Todd McCaffrey, Rebecca Moesta, Larry Niven, Jody Lynn Nye, Nnedi Okorafor, Tim Powers, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Brandon Sanderson, Robert J. Sawyer, Robert Silverberg, Dean Wesley Smith, S.M. Stirling, and Sean Williams.

Illustrator judges are Echo Chernik, Lazarus Chernik, Ciruelo, Vincent Di Fate, Diane Dillon, Bob Eggleton, Craig Elliott, Larry Elmore, Laura Freas Beraha, Brian C. Hailes, Brittany Jackson, Val Lakey Lindahn, Stephan Martiniere, Sergey Poyarkov, Rob Prior, Irvin Rodriguez, Dan dos Santos, Shaun Tan, Tom Wood, and Stephen Youll.

The Contests’ success is evident in the accomplishments of their winners. The 583 writing contest winners and published finalists have written over 8,000 novels and short stories, with sales topping 60 million copies. The 430 illustrating contest winners have contributed to over 700 books, 500 comics, and 130 major motion pictures, gaming feature films, TV shows, and documentaries.

For more information about Writers and Illustrators of the Future, visit www.writersofthefuture.com.